Feather

by Laurie Lyons

  "Where are we going?" she asked looking up at him. Nathaniel didn't look at her. He stared straight ahead with a face like a statue.

  "The quad. I will return from where I fell."

  "Are they coming?"

  "Yes."

  As they approached the University, Lucy took a minute to look at it. It might be the last time she would see it. She would certainly have to be hospitalized for a while after Nathaniel left. Would she be able to return? No, she doubted it. She would return to Kansas and hide in her mother's house. Her mother would get a nurse to care for her. When Lucy was strong enough, she would systematically try to kill herself by accident. That was the plan. Lucy would never see this University again. Ever.

  The quad was packed with students enjoying the summer solstice party. Smoke poured from the numerous barbeques, the band thumped and people milled about dancing and having a great time. Again, Lucy thought, never again. It had still been worth it. She had sacrificed her mortal life for the soul of her true love. She had no other choice.

  There was a bubble of empty space in the middle of the crowd, from experience; Lucy knew this could only be one thing. As they approached, she saw she was right. Where Nathaniel seemed to glow in his Angelic state, this one radiated. It was like the sun itself was standing on the grass. Lucy started to see his features more clearly. He wasn't as handsome as Nathaniel but he was still nice looking. He had light brown hair and was roughly middle age with small smile lines around the same familiar crystal grey eyes. He stood, his wings tucked behind his back, wearing nothing but a pair of loose fitting, white linen pants.

  "Oh, I remember now…." Nathaniel said quietly to himself, "they said I would forget."

  "Who is that?" Lucy whispered as they slowed.

  "Gabriel," Nathaniel replied. He still stared straight ahead.

  "But there is more than one Gabriel right?" Lucy asked warily. "He's not like the Virgin Mary Gabriel right? This is a different guy."

  "No Lucy, there is only one Angel Gabriel."

  "Oh," she didn't know what else to say.

  "Don't be frightened of him, he is very kind." His tone was still blank and Lucy wasn't reassured. They landed several feet in front of Gabriel and Nathaniel put Lucy on her feet and pulled his hands back behind him. He couldn't touch her anymore. Lucy looked about them but people seemed oblivious to Lucy's presence as well. "They can't see any of us right now," Nathaniel said quietly. They walked the few steps closer to the Arch Angel. Lucy's heart was aching and a pressure of sadness had settled upon her shoulders. She reminded herself to get used to both.

  "Nathaniel my brother," Gabriel's voice was strong but smooth. "How are you?" he asked warmly.

  "I am very sad Gabriel," Nathaniel replied.

  "I know," Gabriel looked sad for him.

  "I change my mind!" Lucy blurted out, "I change my mind! You can't have him back. He has to stay here with me! I can't be without him. I lied when I said I wanted him to go and now I take it back!"

  Gabriel smiled at her.

  "I didn't want him to sacrifice his soul for me. I would rather live for," she paused realizing the weight of her words, "sixty years without him and then have him for eternity then have him for sixty years and never again."

  Nathaniel stared at her stunned. He shook his head slightly in disbelief before he said, "I love you."

  "I know," Lucy replied as the chasm of pain inside her broke open again. She let it come. "And we will be together again, one day…when," the anguish overtook her and she choked on the rest of her words. Nathaniel grabbed her tightly and she sobbed against his bare chest. She felt his wings come forward and wrap around her. Sheltered there in feathers, Lucy realized that this was the last moment in her life she would feel totally safe. Nathaniel pulled his wings back and looked at her, she stared for the final time into those beautiful grey eyes. It felt like the first time again and she was lost in their depth. She turned and looked at Gabriel with anguish.

  "How can you do this to us?" she sobbed at him. He looked at her with pity but nothing else. "How can you just drop him down here, let me fall in love with him and then take him away?"

  "Lucy," Nathaniel cautioned. She ignored him not caring that she was yelling at the most powerful Angel in Heaven.

  "What kind of system is this? You are torturing me! This is unfair and unjust. You ought to be ashamed of yourself! I just met him a few months ago!" she sobbed again.

  "You didn't just meet him Lucy," Gabriel replied quietly.

  Lucy stopped. "What?" she asked bleary eyed.

  "You and Nathaniel met sixteen years ago today," he paused obviously thinking that this was a sufficient explanation. When Lucy still looked dumbfounded he continued. "You see, Nathaniel was the Angel that guided your soul into Heaven the day you drowned." Neither Lucy nor Nathaniel moved or spoke as they absorbed this information. "We knew immediately the strength of your connection. You were soul mates and we rejoiced."

  "I was an infant," Lucy said.

  Gabriel smiled at Lucy. "The soul knows no age Lucy. But I must make it clear that you weren't supposed to meet that day. You were not supposed to die. We don't know what twist of fate made you fall in the water all those years ago." He shook his head. "It is a mystery we have never solved."

  "Why did I go back then?" Lucy asked.

  "A mother's love is a very powerful force. We can only assume that you heard her and chose to go back. We think you might have been under the impression that Nathaniel would come with you. As your Mother told you, you said 'Lucy go back' once you realized what you had done. Nathaniel was devastated at his loss." He smiled lovingly at Nathaniel. "You only remember dreaming of Lucy that one time, but I assure you my friend that you dreamt of Lucy every single night for sixteen years." He sighed. "We didn't know what to do. Nathaniel could not be so unhappy; it pained us all to see him so. The unknown factor of course was you Lucy. Because you didn't dream since the accident, we had no way of knowing if your soul remembered Nathaniel."

  "So it was the drowning," Lucy was relieved to get a final answer.

  "The drowning took away your ability to dream Lucy," Gabriel clarified. "But it did not give you your memory."

  "Really?" Lucy asked hopefully.

  "Really," he nodded. "You were born with your gift." He sighed again. "But Nathaniel could dream and each morning he would wake up sadder and sadder. We had no choice but to make an exception. We sent Nathaniel down with no memories of meeting you, just the one dream to see if his soul remembered yours." He laughed. "We had no idea how strong your bond truly was. As you know, you fell deeply in love with Nathaniel the first moment you met. But there is more to love than just attraction. Isn't there?" he said looking at Lucy. "Love involves sacrifice and that's what you were missing. Everyday you offered up a selfish prayer. One that only fed your needs." Nathaniel looked at Lucy with his eyebrows raised.

  "I thanked them every morning for you but apologized that they could never have you back." She explained and Nathaniel shook his head in awe. "But I didn't know!" Lucy pleaded to Gabriel. He raised his hand and she stopped talking.

  "Today though you finally realized the true nature of love. It is putting the other soul before your own. That was the choice we were waiting for. You exercised your free will to benefit the one you love even to your own detriment."

  "So now you take him even though I did the right thing?" Lucy begged.

  "The separation of soul mates is always painful but please remember that it is temporary." Lucy sobbed at the realization of his words. Nathaniel clutched her tighter. There was a large pause and Gabriel regarded the two of them. He smiled slowly. "Regardless of the temporary nature of your separation, I myself am not willing to be responsible for inflicting that kind of pain on anyone."

  Lucy stopped and looked at him stunned. She wasn't sure if she had heard him right. She glanced up at Nathaniel who had the same disbelief in his face.

  "Now the choice is set forth to you Nathaniel, brothe
r, Angel of Heaven. Do you wish to sever your connection with us?"

  Nathaniel did not hesitate. "Yes," he replied quickly before Gabriel could change his mind.

  Gabriel smiled as if he already knew that answer. "Now, you will still be an Angel but a mortal one. You will age and die in your own time. You will keep most of your gifts and your wings of course however; you will have no more help from us. No more wishing for things. We will prepare a mortal existence for you but you are on your own from there to live how you see fit as you will no longer be bound by celestial law." He sobered and looked at Nathaniel. "I suggest you live a life we would be proud of young man."

  "I intend to," Nathaniel said grinning. Lucy wasn't sure what was happening. Was this possible? Could this dream become a reality?

  "What about Roman?" Lucy asked - ever full of questions and doubt.

  "I would think that Roman will be back." Gabriel answered kindly. "My old friend Lucifer will punish him in his cruel way and return him to maintain the balance. Roman won't react to Nathaniel the same way because his ties to the Heavens will be cut. Roman may not want to co-exist with Nathaniel but really who knows? Maybe the two of them could become friends?" Nathaniel looked doubtful . "But Bael, will not be back. Not in your lifetime anyway."

  Gabriel looked to Nathaniel. "Are you ready my Nathaniel?"

  "Yes," Nathaniel said. Lucy stepped away from him and waited. Gabriel raised one hand, smiled at them both and quickly closed his palm into a fist. Nathaniel seemed to drop a few inches like he had gained ten pounds. His wings retreated away and a shirt materialized on his chest.

  "How do you feel?" Lucy asked.

  "Real," was all he said as he touched his hands to his chest. He looked at Gabriel. "How can I ever thank you enough?"

  "Lucy has thanked us enough for the both of you," Gabriel replied smiling at Lucy. She thought her heart would burst with happiness. Tears of joy streamed down her cheeks. "I must go now," Gabriel said taking a step back from them. Suddenly he stopped, remembering something. "Oh yes, and one more thing." He addressed Nathaniel. "Five years from this day, Lucy will fall down a large flight of stairs."

  "How did you?" Lucy started but he cut her off.

  "I myself can not see the future but luckily I know someone who can," he replied smiling at the blue sky and then back at Nathaniel. "That friend suggests strongly that you be at the bottom of those stairs to catch her Nathaniel for although he sees it, he can not change it and the fall will surely kill her."

  "I will be there," Nathaniel promised both to the Arch Angel and to Lucy.

  Gabriel smiled. "I love you both very much. Goodbye."

  They didn't say anything as he slowly faded from sight. Lucy looked up at Nathaniel.

  They didn't speak at first - they didn't have to. Nathaniel picked Lucy up in his arms and swung her around before he put her back on her feet. He grabbed her face and kissed her. Lucy reached around his neck and kissed him with as much love as possible in Heaven or Earth.

  "I love you Lucy."

  "I love you Nathaniel."

  "Lucy?" They looked up to see Anastasia staring at her in wonder. Nick, Paige, Simon, and Suzanne stood behind her staring with their mouths agape. She froze. Was Nathaniel still invisible? "Who's this?" Anastasia asked gesturing to Nathaniel. Relief washed over Lucy and she laughed a little as tears sprang to her eyes. Nathaniel composed himself first, stepped forward and offered his hand.

  "I'm Nathaniel, I'm a new student here. It's nice to meet you."

  Anastasia's eyes lit up. "Well Hi! It's nice to meet you!" Nathaniel shook hands with the rest of the gang. Anastasia darted to Lucy's side as Nathaniel laughed and talked with her friends. "He's gorgeous Lucy!" she hissed in Lucy's ear. "Are you guys….?"

  "Yup," grinned Lucy. "He's mine."

  "Nice," Anastasia replied not without a touch of envy. "At least one of us will have a boyfriend for the summer." Lucy looked at her with eyebrows raised in question. "Roman sent me a text," Anastasia explained sadly. "His parents are taking him to Europe for the rest of the summer."

  She sounded so genuinely disappointed that Lucy replied earnestly, "That sucks."

  "Oh well," Anastasia sighed and smiled, "what are ya gonna do? He'll be back in the fall. But seriously Lucy, where did you find this guy? Where is he from?"

  And for the first time in three months, Lucy didn't have lie to her best friend. She turned, looked Anastasia in the eye and said, "He's from Heaven Stasia. He came from Heaven."

  "I'll say!" Anastasia yelled and Lucy laughed. They walked back over to the group and she wrapped her arms tightly around Nathaniel's waist.

  "Lucy!" Simon yelled over the band. "Nick and I are having an argument and you have to settle it!"

  Lucy grinned and shook her head. "Give it to me, I know it all."

  Epilogue

  Lucy and Nathaniel had stayed late at the party celebrating their new life together. He walked her back to her dorm in the dark of night where they discovered a wallet, and a set of keys. The wallet held identification for Nathaniel Parish, a science student on a full scholarship at Mulbridge University, a driver's license, social insurance card and birth certificate. He was nineteen, his birth date was June 20 and he was born in Heaven Heights MA. The rest of the details he and Lucy would have to fill in as time went on.

  There were keys for the men's dorm where they immediately went and found he had a private furnished dorm room on the top floor. The closet was stocked with clothes for every season and his books and lab materials for the fall semester lined the shelves. Lucy recognized another key and looked out the window to see the black jeep in a parking spot behind the dorm. The final key was a mystery to Lucy. It was Nathaniel who decided it was for the house.

  Nathaniel still had his wings, he still had his powers of natural forces and move things and he still had more power and agility than the average man. He couldn't wish for things anymore but they both felt that the exchange was a fair one. He would have to turn off his own lights in order to be with Lucy and that felt more than just. Lucy had left his dorm room allowing everyone to see her go. She went back to her own room and waited. After the campus died down, she looked to her window and saw Nathaniel slipping in. She realized her window had no bars on it and had grown to accommodate an Angel. She thought that was a nice touch.

  Now Lucy sat in the same place as she had a full season ago. She again was sitting on the stage for all to see. She again was not listening to Dr. Hannon's lecture. This time though, she wasn't bored. Nathaniel and Anastasia sat in the third row and Lucy had been watching them. They were fast friends and Lucy's heart rejoiced. Nathaniel leaned over and whispered something to Stasia who giggled under her breath. Lucy made a mental note to hear about the joke later. Nathaniel looked up at her and smiled his gorgeous smile and Lucy fell for him all over again.

  He was hers forever and no one could take that away now.

  She looked up at the sky and whispered,

  "Thank you, Thank you. Thank God it's over."

  The End

  About the Author

  Laurie Lyons wrote her first story at the age of 8 and hasn’t really stopped since. She lives in Calgary Alberta, Canada with her husband Trevor and their two clever children. She loves writing, reading and spending time with her brilliant friends. “Feather” is the first of many novels from her.

  You can find more information on Laurie and her future novels at www.featherthenovel.com and www.ringoffirebooks.com.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1: Fallen

  Chapter 2: Crazy

  Chapter 3: Questions

  Chapter 4: Answers

  Chapter 5: Options

  Chapter 6: Truths

  Chapter 7: Bliss

  Chapter 8: Demons

  Chapter 9: Travel

  Chapter 10: Lies

  Chapter 11: Epiphanies

  Chapter 12: Road Trip

  Chapter 13: Heat

&nbs
p; Chapter 14: Pieces of Heaven

  Chapter 15: Soul Mates

  Chapter 16: Research

  Chapter 17: Sleep

  Chapter 18: Fallen

  Epilogue

  About the Author